Commission OKs yard waste resolution

Alamogordo residents will be able to dump up to 12 tons of yard waste per year at no extra charge other than the fee already tacked on to their water bills.

The Alamogordo City Commission passed a resolution Tuesday that tweaks the policy for yard waste dumping at the city-run convenience center on LaVelle Road.

Anyone who has a water hook-up with the city receives a $2 charge on that bill, which allows them to dump up to one ton of waste at the center per month.

For every 100 pounds over the prescribed amount, residents have been charged $2. The resolution changed the policy so that it now allows residents to dump their entire year's allocation 12 tons all at once with no extra charge.

The commission also removed a sunset clause from the resolution, which the city hopes will encourage residents to clean up their yards.

There had been some concern over lost revenue that will result from the free dumping. Mayor Susie Galea said previously that the city could possibly lose about $5,000 yearly in revenue if people are allowed to dump yard waste at no cost. The time frame for the lost revenue could not be verified Thursday.

City staff projected about $13,400 in revenue for the $2 charge for amounts over the monthly limit, with about $5,160 of that coming from yard waste.

The city processed about 283 tons of yard waste in fiscal year 2011.

Residents are also allowed to dump scrap metal at the center at no charge.

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Galea said previously that the commission was mostly in agreement to pass the measure which it also hopes will help curb illegal dumping in the desert surrounding the city but that it wanted to make a few changes, so the measure was tabled until Tuesday's meeting.

The convenience center was established in 1993 as a transfer station for residents of Alamogordo. Non-city residents are still charged $2 per 100 pounds of waste they dump at the center.Contact John Bear at jbear@alamogordonews.com; follow him on Twitter @johnbearwithme.